Eventually we’re going to have OpenClaw-like assistants that can filter or prioritize emails and calls, but for now I wish there was some kind of voicemail scripting. If a voicemail transcript contains “$”, delete it.
Micro.blog books update: https://www.manton.org/2026/03/06/microblog-books-update.html
I have a few blog post drafts about recent AI controversy and advertising that I may post eventually, but for now I do want to note Dario Amodei’s blog post on the ongoing negotiations with the military. I thought his leaked internal post w... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/06/i-have-a-few-blog.html
Simon Carstensen has rebuilt Jottit, the web publishing tool he built with Aaron Swartz in 2007:
"Aaron believed the web should be easy enough that anyone could participate. Not just people who know how to code or who can afford a platform’s cut."
Watched: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Enjoyed this more than I was expecting. Good show. 📺
Purple flowers are in full bloom.
Mountain laurel.
So nice to work on a brand new Mac app, Objective-C, not much code yet. Builds and runs practically instantly.
I’m continuing to tinker with OpenClaw to see how it could be useful to me. For the last week, I’ve had it wake up once an hour and pick a small change to make to a new, experimental project. It’ll track what it’s working on, fix something, then push the change to GitHub for me to review.
White House press briefing on TV in the background while I’m working. They really have no coherent message for why we’re at war, or how to determine when the mission is over. 🇺🇸
The Washington Post reporting on how Claude is being used for the Iran war:
"As planning for a potential strike in Iran was underway, Maven, powered by Claude, suggested hundreds of targets, issued precise location coordinat... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/04/the-washington-post-reporting-on.html
Naming is hard. New Kickstarter for Build Awesome, the renamed Eleventy. Both names are a bit awkward:
"With Font Awesome, we made icons easy. With Web Awesome, we unlocked framework-independent web components. With Build Awes... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/04/naming-is-hard-new-kickstarter.html
Apple’s pricing this week is interesting to me. Doesn’t matter the size or purpose of a device, everything is the same price:
iPhone 17e: $599
iPad Air: $599
MacBook Neo: $599
Jason Kottke:
"Steve Jobs famously said that computers are a bicycle for the mind. What does that make LLMs? An e-bike for the mind? A car for the mind? A jet plane for the mind?"
Good question. I think bicycle still works, though.
I had to back the new Brandon Sanderson crowdfunding campaign. Opted for just the new novel.
Brent Simmons blogged last week about why Objective-C. I still prefer Objective-C and plan to continue to use it. One change I’m thinking about making, though… Going all code for UI instead of XIBs or Storyboards, to make it easier to diff when working with AI.
A plastic cup with iced coffee sits on a table near a garden setting with a pond in the background.
Cosmic. Everything would be perfect about this morning except I just opened my AirPods case and… it was empty! Accidentally left them at home. ☕️
I went with Talarico. I feel pretty good about him putting together a compelling campaign for Texas right now. But I’ve always liked Crockett too.
MacBook Neo! I love that Apple might be trying a totally new name.
Back in Austin, voted this morning. I had meant to early vote last week but too much was going on. James Talarico vs. Jasmine Crockett might end up being close! Very curious how it shakes out and if the party can come together united. 🇺🇸
Ben Thompson’s article about Anthropic and the Pentagon is worth a read, although not everyone is going to be satisfied with it. Anthropic is an interesting company because it feels like they don’t fully believe in their own product. Like Dario Amodei kind of wishes he was working on something else.
A sprawling cityscape features numerous high-rise buildings under a cloudy sky.
Good morning, Atlanta.
Steve Troughton-Smith blogged about the projects he worked on over the last month with Codex 5.3:
"It didn’t just blow away my expectations, it showed me the world has changed: we’ve just undergone a permanent, irreversible abstraction level shift."
A basketball game is taking place with a player shooting the ball while others on the court and spectators in the arena watch.
Blazers in Atlanta. 🏀
I cancelled my NYT subscription two years ago in part because it felt like they threw Joe Biden under the bus, but they really do have good reporting most of the time. Some background details on the Anthropic / OpenAI and Pent... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/01/i-cancelled-my-nyt-subscription.html
Sad to hear about this shooting in Austin. It’s also weird to be out of town when something like this happens:
"Three people died, and at least 14 others were injured in a shooting on West Sixth Street overnight Saturday into Sunday, ... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/01/sad-to-hear-about-this.html
Atlanta cityscape features a Ferris wheel, modern skyscrapers, and two large columns against a clear blue sky.
Centennial Olympic Park.
Mike’s summary oversimplifies the tweets. A more accurate reading would be that for Anthropic we assume all the safety is in the contract, and for OpenAI it’s spread over contract and “technical safeguards”.
Strange juxtaposition with the war in Iran happening at the same time as the controversy around Anthropic, OpenAI, and the Pentagon. OpenAI has a post with the details of their agreement, which also includes red lines on ma... https://www.manton.org/2026/03/01/strange-juxtaposition-with-the-war.html
A vintage Coca-Cola vending machine features classic branding and a mechanical coin slot.
World of Coca‑Cola. 🥤
A laptop and an iced coffee sit on a wooden table in a well-lit cafe with a modern interior.
Aviator Coffee. ☕️
